Stephan Carey Serby (born July 22, 1949) [1] is a sports reporter who writes for the New York Post . Although known primarily as a New York Jets beat reporter, he has also written many columns on other National Football League franchises, particularly the New York Giants. He has also written or co-authored books on several different sports and sports figures.
Serby received a Bachelor of Journalism from Ohio University in 1971. [2] He took an entry-level position with the Post in 1972, was promoted to an editorial assistant in September 1972 only a week later and was elevated to sportswriter in 1972. [1]
In football circles, he is remembered for a physical confrontation with Jets quarterback Richard Todd in which Serby was pushed into a locker as a result of Serby's support for back-up Matt Robinson for the starter's job. Al Sharpton verbally attacked both Steve Serby and his employer for a column in which Serby commended Tom Coughlin for putting star wide receiver Plaxico Burress on the injured reserve list after an incident where Burress shot himself in the leg with an unlicensed firearm. [3]
Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. is an American civil rights and social justice activist, Baptist minister, radio talk show host, and TV personality, who is also the founder of the National Action Network civil rights organization. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. presidential election. He hosts a weekday radio talk show, Keepin' It Real, which is nationally syndicated by Urban One, and he is a political analyst and weekend host for MSNBC, hosting PoliticsNation.
Tawana Vicenia Brawley is an African American woman from New York who gained notoriety in November 1987 at age 15 when she falsely accused four white men of kidnapping and raping her over a four-day period.
Plaxico Antonio Burress is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans, and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the eighth overall pick in the 2000 NFL draft. He also played for the New York Giants and the New York Jets, and caught the game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl XLII as the Giants beat the then-undefeated New England Patriots.
Antonio Durran Pierce is an American professional football coach and former linebacker who was most recently the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) in 2024. He previously served as the linebackers coach for the Raiders from 2022 to 2023.
Benjamin Brafman is an American criminal defense attorney and founder of the Manhattan-based law firm Brafman & Associates. Brafman is known for representing many high-profile defendants, including celebrities, accused Mafia members, and political figures.
SportsNet New York (SNY) is an American regional sports network owned by Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, LLC, itself a joint venture between Fred Wilpon's Sterling Equities, Charter Communications through its acquisition of Time Warner Cable in May 2016 and Comcast, through its NBC Sports Group subsidiary. The channel primarily broadcasts games and related programming involving the New York Mets, but also carries supplementary coverage of the Mets and the New York Jets as well as college sports events.
The National Action Network (NAN) is an American not-for-profit, civil-rights organization founded by the Reverend Al Sharpton in New York City, New York, in early 1991. In a 2016 profile, Vanity Fair called Sharpton "arguably the country's most influential civil rights leader".
Carl Richard Todd is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for the New York Jets and New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL) from 1976 to 1986. Like former Jets quarterback Joe Namath and Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler, he played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide under coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. Todd was selected by the Jets in the first round of the 1976 NFL draft with the sixth overall pick.
Santonio Holmes Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft after playing college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes. In 2009, Holmes was named the most valuable player (MVP) of Super Bowl XLIII as the Steelers beat the Arizona Cardinals. In 2010, Holmes was traded to the New York Jets in exchange for the Jets' fifth round pick. Holmes also played a season for the Chicago Bears.
Anthony Schlegel is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). Schlegel played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes after transferring from the United States Air Force Academy and was selected by the New York Jets in the third round of the 2006 NFL draft. He was also a member of the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL and the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League (UFL).
Ahmad Bradshaw is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Marshall Thundering Herd. Bradshaw was selected in the seventh round of the 2007 NFL draft by the New York Giants. He is a two-time Super Bowl champion, winning Super Bowls XLII and XLVI as a member of the Giants, defeating the New England Patriots each time. He was the leading rusher in each game, becoming one of eight running backs in NFL history to be the leading rusher in two Super Bowls.
The 2007 season was the New York Giants' 83rd in the National Football League (NFL), their 32nd playing their home games at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and their fourth under head coach Tom Coughlin.
The 1981 New York Jets season was the 22nd season for the franchise and its twelfth in the National Football League (NFL). It began with the team trying to improve upon its 4–12 record from 1980 under head coach Walt Michaels. The Jets sputtered early, starting 0–3 and fueling a quarterback controversy and altercation between quarterback Richard Todd and sports writer Steve Serby and speculation about Michaels’ job. After the 0–3 start, however, the Jets would catch fire, and go on a 10–2–1 run. The team ultimately finished the season with a record of 10–5–1 and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1969, breaking a twelve-season drought. In the playoffs, however, they fell to their division rivals, the Buffalo Bills, 31–27.
The 2002 season was the Pittsburgh Steelers' 70th as a professional sports franchise and as a member of the National Football League.
Steven Smith is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Southern California (USC), and earned All-American honors. He was selected by the New York Giants in the second round of the 2007 NFL draft, and was also a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis Rams, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The 2008 New York Giants season was the franchise's 84th season in the National Football League (NFL) as the team looked to defend its Super Bowl XLII title along with trying to become the first team since rival 2004 New England Patriots and the first NFC team since division rival 1993 Dallas Cowboys to win consecutive Super Bowls. They improved upon their 10–6 record from 2007, becoming NFC East champions and finished with the #1 seed in the NFC playoffs for the only time in the Tom Coughlin era. Despite a franchise best 11–1 start and clinching the number 1 seed for the first time in eight years, the Giants lost three of their last four games, including their first playoff game against the Eagles 23-11, ending their season. The Giants were the only NFC team from the 2007 playoffs to qualify for the 2008 playoffs.
The Helmet Catch was an American football play involving New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and wide receiver David Tyree in the final two minutes of Super Bowl XLII on February 3, 2008. It featured Manning escaping from the grasp of three New England Patriots defensive players and throwing a forward pass, followed by Tyree making a leaping catch by pressing the ball against his helmet. The play, a 32-yard gain during a drive on which the Giants scored the game-winning touchdown, was instrumental in the Giants' 17–14 upset victory over the Patriots, who were on the verge of becoming the first National Football League (NFL) team to finish a season undefeated and untied since the 1972 Miami Dolphins, and the first since the NFL adopted a 16-game regular season in 1978. NFL Films' Steve Sabol called it "the greatest play the Super Bowl has ever produced". The play was also named by NFL Films as "The Play of the Decade (2000s)". It was also the final catch of Tyree's NFL career.
Kelvin Benjamin is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida State Seminoles and was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft. He also played for the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs.
Nick Chiles is an American Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of 20 books. He writes primarily about African-American life and culture.